Highlights: Miss Independence 2016

This year’s Miss Independence pageant is one for the books. The event took place at the National Cultural Centre on February 20 and it didn’t come sans drama. The results left some sour, however, despite those insults hurled at the judges, the right girl, undoubtedly, was crowned.

Nine girls were initially set to take the stage that night, however, only seven contestants participated; the girls gave heartfelt performances, each touching on various aspects of human rights, the theme for the night.

Some performances were humour injected, (drama segment), however, the messages were powerful ones. Others were a tad more solemn. Amongst the topics discussed that night were domestic and sexual abuse, prevalent crimes that are crippling today’s society.

The other segments: ambassadorial speech, evening wear and interview segment, were just as interesting and it was easy to see that judges would have a tough time picking the top three.

In the end, Akina Randolph who scooped up the awards for Best Talent, Best in Swimwear and Best Promotional Speech, was declared Miss Independence 2016. Runners up were Lisa Eugene second, and Tara Gonzague, third, who also received the award for Best in Evening Wear; the awards for Best Interview and Miss Congeniality went to Fiona Edan and Jesse Wilson respectively.